ExOne
ExOne 3D printer
Rise in demand for 3D printing machines has boosted ExOne's Q4 figures.
ExOne (NASDAQ: XONE) has revealed in its latest quarterly report that its sales hit fresh highs in the three months to December 31st 2012.
The global provider of 3D printing machines and related products to the industrial marketplace revealed its data for both the final three-month period and the entire year.
Revenue for the final quarter was $12.7 million (£8.38 million, €9.95 million), which is up by $10 million compared to the same timeframe in 2011. Net income was $0.9 million - again an improvement over the net loss of $2.8 million for the same period the year before. Included in the fourth quarter was a $1.5 million reduction in licence fees.
For the full 12-month period, revenue was $28.7 million - which is up by 87.6 per cent from revenues of $15.3 million in 2011, while net loss last year was $10.2 million compared to the $8 million in 2011.
Stronger 3D printing machine sales drove revenue growth for ExOne in 2012, with machine sales climbing to $8.9 million in the October-December 2012 period. Eight machines were sold in the final quarter and 13 for the entire year. In the final quarter of 2011 ExOne only sold one machine. This higher sales figure is due to rising customer demand for the company's newer models, while additive manufacturing is becoming more mainstream among global manufacturing companies.
Indeed, machine sales represented 70 per cent of total sales in the fourth quarter of 2012.
3D printed parts, materials and other products (PSCs) generated a revenue that was $1.3 million - or 52 per cent - higher year-on-year for the final quarter, while for the full year this figure improved by nearly one-third (31.3 per cent) or $3.1 million, due to the fact ExOne increased its customer base from growing demand for 3D printed parts.
Gross profit in the final three months of 2012 improved by $5.8 million from gross profit of $0.4 million in 2011's Q4 owing to the rise in machine sales, while operating income for the final quarter of 2012 was $2 million or 16 per cent of sales compared with an operating loss of £2.1 million in 2011 Q4.
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer at ExOne Kent Rockwell commented: "We made solid progress in 2012. The recent technological advances of our 3D printing machines create persuasive economics for our industrial customers, who have demonstrated a growing interest in applying 3D printing in their manufacturing processes."
ExOne completed its initial public offering of more than six million shares of common stock at $18 per unit on February 12th of this year. This led to net proceeds to the company of $92 million, bolstering its balance sheet.
And the outlook for 2013 appears to be rosy for the business too, as it is estimating full-year revenue to be in the range of about $48 million to $52 million, with approximately two-thirds of revenue anticipated to fall in the final half of the year.
Between June and the end of December, ExOne plans to launch two new PSCs which will expand its operations to a total of seven. Gross margin in 2013 is anticipated to be between 42 and 46 per cent.
Mr Rockwell concluded: "We believe we are a driver of the rate of adoption of 3D printing for industrial applications as well as a benefactor of the growing relevance of this technology in manufacturing. As we move forward, our priorities are to capture this opportunity by developing PSCs in high potential market areas and advancing our capabilities with new metal-based materials."